It was chilly and rainy when we started out, and it never got much warmer and didn’t stop raining for good until the last 30 miles or so. We had a couple of breaks from the rain, but they were always followed by a period of rain that seemed stronger than before. The first rest area (20 miles) had an indoor bathroom but other than flimsy tents and porta-potties none of the others had shelter.

We kept a reasonably fast pace, considering the difficult and even dangerous conditions. I would say in general we were in the 16-17mph, slower in some sections, and a couple of fast, dry areas where we were able to carry 20+ for several miles.

In terms of conditions, this is easily the most difficult ride I’ve ever done. The roads were always wet, full of potholes, gravel, wet leaves, branches, etc. We must have seen 50-75 people with flat tires along the roadside (including one poor guy who got one at about the 98-mile mark.) The weather report had called for tailwinds the whole way, but what we got were strong gusting headwinds and unpredictable crosswinds which made handling the bike on the roads scary at times. Between wind, rain, cold, and bad roads, it seemed as though we were always coping with at least three out of four at a time.

The cold made it hard to figure out the nutrition plan. Most of my calories were liquid, but it was hard to remember to drink in that temperature, and since we weren’t sweating, we got to each rest stop feeling like we were going to burst. The gel in my (useless) gel flask became too viscous to suck out be the end, so I went with virtually no calories at all over the last 20 miles or so, which was a huge mistake, given that the last 20 miles are by far the most difficult terrain. There’s one tough long stretch of road that isn’t steep, but seems to go up and up and up into infinity. That’s followed by a bunch of roller that always somehow seems that the downhills are shorter than the uphills.

With the lack of calories in the final section, I started to get really light-headed and bonk-y at the end. I kept shifting into easier and easier gears but just couldn’t make my legs go, even on the flats. I was crawling up a hill at one point, at slower than 10mph, which was disconcerting, since hills are usually a strength of mine. Finally, it dawned on me that I hadn’t been eating, so I somehow sucked down a gel or two from my flask and that gave me enough energy to get over the last climbs, even passing a couple of people who had passed me, and sped into the finish area at a good pace.

And, as a final indignity to it all, I rolled into the finish area, and when I went to stop, my cleat wouldn’t disengage, and I fell over, scuffing a small hole in my saddle, and practically knocking LazyMarathoner and her pretty, new P2C to the ground. Since I talked her into this Century in the first place, it’s a wonder she’s still speaking to me.


I don’t have any problems with how I did. I was much faster last year, but the conditions were totally different. Four or five people had accidents requiring ambulance rides along the course, do say nothing of what I’m sure were a ton of minor accidents. I wish I had been smarter about my nutrition and not bonked so much at the end. There’s no way I would ever want to do a ride like this again by choice, though.

Fell off my bike at the finish like, put on some dryer, warmer clothes and got out of my wet bike shoes. Ate a burger and some pasta and sat on the grass until it was time to get on the train back to the city. Took a little snooze on the train, which felt good.


I think the conditions (and by extension, my nutrition) were the only things that kept me from equaling or exceeding my pace from last year. When we had stretches of decent road and it wasn’t raining, we were able to motor along at a fairly fast pace. I just wasn’t about to risk crashing for the sake of a Century when I’ve got my A race in 8 weeks. I felt good on the bike for the first 60-75 miles or so, which I think was a really good sign. It’s only my second Century and the longest ride ever on a tri bike.


This is really a pretty good event, altogether. I’ve got a bit of an issue with the way the bikes are loaded and unloaded, since I don’t think they’re always as careful as they could or should be, but in general, the route is good, the rest stops are fine (though, in retrospect, it would be nice in the future if, when conditions warrant, they were able to provide shelter, heaters or hot food/drinks. I think there was a serious risk of hypothermia for people who weren’t prepared for the conditions and there was really nowhere for them to go to get out of the rain and cold.

I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’d do this ride again. But not if it’s raining.